Lets discover the magic of Antigua! This guide includes some general tips and spots, perhaps if you are planning a short trip, but principly this info is targetedwould be most valuable for those who have a bit more time to really get immersed in the life here.
Antigua is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been enchanted by. In truth I am generally not enticed by cities, less-so cities that are so full of tourism, but Antigua has an exciting, dynamic vibe all year round.
It is a very small, colonial, walkable city, packed with quirky, diverse retaurants, shops, museums and venues. And surrounding it a charming group of towns and villages waiting to be explored.
When to visit
All year round Antigua is a grat place to visit. Peak season is conventionally November to April, rainy season May to October. However, even in rainy season it generally only rains for a couple of hours in the afternoons, you will almost always have the sun shining on you and the volcanos in the mornings! Beware that in November and December the nights are really quite chilly.
Places to Visit
My favourite thing to do in Antigua is walk around the local market with my dog Lola. She absolutely loves the ambiente del mercado! If you have a kitchen while you're here you can easily never step foot in a supermarket and eat some of the most nurishing food I have found, there is a huge amount of fresh produce grown locally that is on sale every single day until about 17.00. We can chat about what kind of prices to expect and the norms of the mercado world!
Little slice of bosque (forest) in the middle of the city. There are various bars and retaurants inside, camp fires and lots of different places to chill. You can even bring your own churrasco (BBQ) and chill there in the day.
Beautiful art gallery with exhibitions often roatating and many kinds of workshops to get involved in. Go and meet Andrea and Ricardo, a brother and sister who own the gallery, to find out whats going on during your stay.
Beautiful hostel with lots of cummunity spaces and events, even if you're not staying there go to visit and see what they have going on during your stay.
Absolutely incredible hotel! Very high class, it's like a museum/art gallery inside and there's even some ruins within the hotel. Visit to sit and have a drink in the gardens even if you're not staying here.
Lovely little parque located up on the hill, on the opposite side of the sity to the Agua Volcano. Incredible view of the sity and Agua! you can drive up and park in the car park or you can walk up directly from the centre of Antigua.
The Acatenango hike is a must-do while you are here in Antigua. There are few other places in the world you can get so close to such an active volcano. After ascending Acatenango you have a perfect view of Fuego, it's neighbouring, active valcano. It errupts almost every day, some days all day and night long! The tours mostly take two days, ascend on the first day, watch the erruptions in the night, stay in a range of camping'glamping facilities and descend the next day. However there are also options to to the tour in one day in a 4x4.
Is it very cold at night up Acatenango so make sure you have enough clothes and good, sturdy shoes, or find a tour company which provides everything (I can help you find the perfect tour for you).
Pacaya is another volcano, close to Guatemala City, besite Lago Amatitlan, but if you don't want to stay in the capital it is easy to find tours going direct from Antigua.
This hike is less challenging that the Acatenango hike.
My top choice for eating! There is a canteen of comedors inside the market, offering high quality, all made from scratch, feel good, traditional food. Almuerzo (lunch) could be a caldo, carne asada, hilachas, chile rellenos, pollo durado, pepian and many more. It always come with a little soup and a fresco (natural fruit juice, but ask becasue sometimes they aren't natural) for a cost of 20 Quetzales (£2). Lets chat and I can direct to my favourit spots inside the maze that is the mercado municipal!
Perhaps if you are new in Central America and are a little nervous of the food safety conditions in the local market there are a range of lovely comedors (casual restaurants) where you can eat to same home-cooked, traditional food with piece of mind. Plates are around 35 quetzales (£3.5).
There is a little courtyard in the back which is great for relaxing in the afternoons (although NB tehre is no wifi and it closes at 16.00).
Perhaps if you are new in Central America and are a little nervous of the food safety conditions in the local parket there are a range of lovely comedors (casual restaurants) where you can eat to same home cooked food with piece of mind. Plates are around 35 quetzales (£3.5).
The square outside the La Merced church is one of the best spots for street food in Antigua. At weekends there is a huge variety of vendors of food and crafts. you can find papusas, tostadas, shucos, churrasco, crepas, atoles, mole con banana and much much more!
Traditionally where families would come to wash their plates and clothes adn sometimes bodies, as a lot fo houses don't have running water. Here in the centre it is not used so much for this any more but tanque's in other parts of the city are still used communly by locals.
There is a lovely parque here (with grass to sit on unlike a lot fo the other aprks in the city) with street food at the weekends and one of the best granizadas (shaved ice snack) I've ever tried.
This place is not expensive and it's absolutely breathtaking! It's located in the little village of San Cristobal el Alto, with an incredible view or all three volcanos, Antigua and beyond and top-notch ambient here always.
This Cafe/Bakery has lots of character, nice place to sit. The pastries at the front are a seperate menu to the cafe menu, ask for both.
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Nightlife
Antigua has a buzzing nightlife pretty much all year round, although in high season there are much more one-off events. From around 18.00 to 23.00 everyday the streets of Antigua centre will be full of people bustling around, chilling in the streets and parks, eating street food, visiting the many bars and restaurants. A range of casual, daytime terrace bars, regeton clubs, venues ...
Beautiful courtyard surrounded by a variety of restaurants and bars, open all day and evening. El Local right at the back is one of my favourites, La Taverna is a rock bar where you might find yourself dancing on the bar, Brooklyn where'll you can sip some Gallo and eat pizza by the slice.
Inside La Fuente, mixture of latin and techno nights, normally with a DJ. Nice courtyard area and normally a grat, friendly vibe about the place. Sometimes the party can go quite late here, but you have to get in before 11.
Breathtaking venue, it's located up above Jocotenango with a perfect view of the valley. I can tell you this can be a spectacular place for the amaneser (sunrise)! Parties here could be reggaeton or techno and have been known to go on until 08.00!
One of the most renowned and trustoworthy tour companies in Antigua. they offer amazing service at a range of price points. At the moment they only coordinate Acatenango and Fuego tours.
Antigua is surprisingly well connected with these shuttle services so pop in with them to figure out where you're headed to next.
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Areas to live
Antigua is a very easy place to live
Antigua has a great sense of community and and endless list of events, workshops, ceremonies, live music, latin parties, electronic parties. It's the perfect place to enjoy for a while if you are perhaps a digital nomad, looking to do some world class spanish lessons, enjoy trekking mountains and volcanoes but don't want to stay exclusively in rural areas.
There are some lovely options of places to stay in the centre, and it's possible to find some basic lodgings for an affordable price.
However because the centre is quite small it can be nice to live in another area, get a bit of distance from the tourism hub and find a tranquil little spot somewhere to enjoy life at the foot of 3 of the most impressive volcanoes I've ever seen! and come to the centre to soak up the vibrant Antigua life when it calls you.
To the north of the city is Jocotenango (walkable to Antigua centre), which is around the same size as Antigua centre itself. There is a lovely sense of community here, with a buzzing central parque where you can always find street food and kids playing. There are lots of condominiums in this area with lovely, affordable options to live, short or long term. Here you'll find supermarkets, a mall, cinema etc.
Very quaint little village at the foot of Agua Volcano, with breathtaking views of Fuego and Acatenango volcanoes from the central park. Lots of local, very affordable renting options.
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How long to stay?
Obviously each person will feel differently here, and I am already here for almost 8 months, but I would recommend a month or two as an ideal amount of time to base yourself in Antigua. There are a lot of other places like Lago Atitlan, El Paradon, Quetzaltenango, Guatemala City etc. which can be easily visited from Antigua.
There are lots of other places closeby like, Santa Ana, Milpas Altas, San Lucas, San Juan del Obispo, El Hato, La Rinconada, Pastores which are great options to build a little life for a while.
What else?
Antigua is also full of museums and historical sites, to find out about them and much much more book a comnsultation call with me.
Hola todos! I'm Kate. Full-time traveller and vanlifer.
Are you looking for something out of the ordinary? Let's plan your trip of a lifetime! My speciality is local insight, how to immerse yourself in the culture of a new place, free activities and sights to see.
Since the age of 17 I have been obsessed with immersing myself in new places and cultures. I have visited more than 40 countries in my 28 years and I have now been travelling full-time for the past 2 years, and plan to continue forever!
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